Where to start for GMAT?

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Where to start for GMAT?

by EhAyy » Sat Dec 03, 2016 9:28 pm
Hey,

I've just started looking into the GMAT as its required for all of the business schools I'm applying to. Until last week I did not have a clue of what to expect and even now I'm still searching around on where to start. I am on course with a 1st class honours in accounting and finance. The school I want to get into has a deadline of 15th may for me to submit a GMAT course, but Ideally I'd like to have my GMAT done by the end of March at the very latest. I am currently working full time but I will be taking periodic holidays so I'm only working 3/4 days a week to help me focus more time prep. Current GMAT exp is zero to none. I Plan to start prep around the end of DEC/beginning of JAN. Would this time frame be suitable?

I look forward to any input.

Many thanks,
Eh.

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by EhAyy » Sat Dec 03, 2016 9:31 pm
Also not sure if this in the right section. Please move it accordingly.

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by [email protected] » Sun Dec 04, 2016 10:33 am
Hi EhAyy,

Since it sounds like you're just beginning your studies, then it would be a good idea to take a FULL-LENGTH practice CAT Test; you can download 2 for free from www.mba.com (and they come with some additional practice materials). If you want to do a little studying first, so that you can familiarize yourself with the basic content and question types, then that's okay - but you shouldn't wait too long to take that initial CAT. That score will give us a good sense of your natural strengths and weaknesses and will help provide a basis for comparison as you continue to study. A FULL CAT takes about 4 hours to complete, so make sure that you've set aside enough time to take it in one sitting. Once you have those scores, you should report back here and we can come up with a study plan.

Many Test Takers spend 3 months (or more) of consistent study time before they hit their 'peak' scores, so you might need to extend your study timeframe a bit.

I'd like to know a bit more about your timeline and goals:
1) What is your goal score?
2) What Business Schools are you planning to apply to?
3) What are the application deadlines for the other Schools?

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by EhAyy » Sun Dec 04, 2016 1:34 pm
Hi Rich.C,

I'll take a look at that CAT test and should be able to get it done by Thursday.

Taking slightly longer to do the GMAT is not an issue, I just want the best score. Anything above 640 should be good enough for me. I am applying to Henley Business School, University of Edinburgh Business School and Cranfield School of Management in the UK. These three schools don't require a GMAT from me but Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University and Tilburg University do. The deadlines for these two schools are in May and June respectively.

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by [email protected] » Mon Dec 05, 2016 10:21 am
Hi EhAyy,

Your score goal is reasonable and you appear to have plenty of time before the application deadlines occur, so I'd say that you have a good chance at hitting your goal. That having been said, we still need that initial CAT score and you likely will have to put in a lot of time and effort to hone your GMAT Test-Taking skills.

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by EhAyy » Mon Dec 05, 2016 1:19 pm
Hi Rich.C
I had about an hour free today so I did go in blind and try LBS mini test (not sure about reliability/accuracy in comparison to the CAT).I got 350-390.

I didnt do too well, I probably should have mentioned I have dyslexia and dysgraphia(I will apply for reasonable adjustments) which is noticeable in the weak verbal performance. I've attached the brief report from the test. I'm not sure what to make of it, both were timed for 40 mins each but I did rush through them as I only had an hour to play with.

As I have busy week ahead with two video interviews for grad jobs(keeping my options open) and two assessments I won't have the time to sit the CAT until the weekend. Hopefully that will give a clearer picture and we can see where I can go from there.

What materials are a must?

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by [email protected] » Mon Dec 05, 2016 9:49 pm
Hi EhAyy,

A mini-test can't provide the type of assessment that a FULL-LENGTH CAT would, but this score result implies that you'll have to work on your knowledge base in addition to learning all of the proper Tactics, patterns and 'secrets' to the Test. To that end, you might want to spend some time on some of the subject-matter that you'll face on Test Day (re: grammar and math) before you actually begin your formal GMAT studies.

From what you've described, if you have a documented history of your conditions, then you might be able to qualify for 'accommodations' (essentially - extra time for each section of the GMAT). The testing process for accommodations can take upwards of 2 months though, so you would want to get that process started sooner rather than later.

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by Scott@TargetTestPrep » Tue Dec 06, 2016 4:48 pm
I am happy to provide some general advice about getting started with your GMAT prep. First, I agree that starting out with a practice exam is a great idea. The results of that exam will provide you an accurate depiction of what to expect on the GMAT as well as your baseline GMAT score. With that score, you can determine how far you are from your 640 goal and make a more accurate determination of the prep needed to reach that goal.

Once you have your baseline score, you may consider mapping out a study schedule to keep organized and efficient throughout your prep. When devising a study plan, you must remember that the GMAT is so challenging in part because you are presented with only 37 quant questions and 41 verbal questions on any given GMAT, yet those questions come from a huge topic pool.

For instance, when presented with GMAT Sentence Correction questions, you are not being tested just on the basics of grammar; rather, you are expected to apply the rules of misplaced modifiers, subject-verb agreement, idioms, parallelism, and more. If you have not developed the particular tactics necessary to attack questions testing these principles, you will find it difficult to efficiently and accurately answer Sentence Correction questions.

Similarly, on quant, when presented with Geometry questions, for example, you are not being tested just on the basics of Geometry, such as the area of a square or triangle; rather, you are expected to tackle questions involving inscribed shapes, shaded regions, similar triangles, arc length, and more. Once again, you must develop the tactical knowledge to swiftly attack such problems. Can you recognize when a right triangle is inscribed in a circle? Do you have a process for how to attack a question testing you on an equilateral triangle inscribed in a circle? Can you easily recognize a question that requires the use of the properties of similar triangles? By developing tactics to attack such problems, not only will you increase your accuracy on GMAT quant, but also you will increase your speed and efficiency.

To develop your tactical skills for each individual topic, you want to strive for linear and targeted learning. In other words, you want to master one topic prior to moving to the next.
For example, if you are learning about Percents, you want to make sure you learn as much as possible about Percents: percent less than, percent greater than, variable percents, and percent change. Then it will help to do numerous practice problems on Percents (50 or more). After completing the problems, do a thorough analysis of those you incorrectly answered and fix any issues needing more attention. Once those issues have been addressed, move on to the next quant topic. Ideally, you want to follow a similar process for the verbal topics of Sentence Correction, Critical Reasoning, and Reading Comprehension.

When selecting a study resource, be sure that it allows for such focused learning and practice. If you plan to study on your own for the GMAT, you may consider an online self-study course. Self-study courses typically provide detailed study plans and have granular analytics, so you can easily track your progress as you move through the course. By being able to track your progress, you will remain more engaged, and you'll be able to more accurately forecast when you're ready to take your real GMAT.

I wrote a detailed article that explains some more steps that you can follow to help you achieve your GMAT score goal. .

Once you complete your practice exam, follow up here or reach out to me directly and I'll be happy to provide some further advice.
Good luck!!!!

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by MartyMurray » Tue Dec 06, 2016 7:54 pm
Hi Eh.

Rushing through and spending an hour to take a test meant to take 80 minutes is not a great way to get a sense of your skill level. Even at around two minutes per question, which is the amount of time normally available when one is taking the GMAT, the time goes by very quickly, and with only 75% of that time, scoring reasonably high would be very challenging. As you may have noticed, even getting verbal questions right takes some fairly involved and intense analysis.

So while maybe at this point one could say that likely you have a fair amount of work to do in order to hit your score goal, really we still don't know where you stand.

Meanwhile, while that LBS mini test may be a fairly accurate representation of the GMAT, there are better tests that you could use.

On the official website associated with the GMAT, mba.com, is available software called GMAT Prep. The first version that you can download is free, and it contains two official practice tests, which tests represent rather accurately what you will see when you take the actual GMAT. So I suggest signing up for an account at mba.com, downloading the GMAT Prep software and using one of those tests as your next practice test.

Before you take that next test, however, I think that you should familiarize yourself at least some with the directions related to each type of GMAT question and with each of the types of questions that appear on the test. Few people taking the GMAT either have to read the directions or are not familiar with the question types, and taking a test cold the way you did is not a great way to see what you skill level is. Some basic review of what appears on the test combined with having more time per question could conceivably increase your practice test score by 100 points or more.

So probably it makes sense for you to do some preparing before you take another one.

One way that you could start training is by using the math review and the 90 practice questions included in the free version of the GMAT Prep software.

Having used those resources, not only would you be on the way to being appropriately ready to take a first practice test, but also you would have gotten a better sense of what you need to do in order to hit your score goal, and thereby gotten a better sense of what types of resources you should use going forward.
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by Bara » Wed Dec 07, 2016 4:58 pm
Throwing hat in the ring.

1) Take a full test, either on CAT or paper, by GMAC. Assume you have 1.5x or double time. SO, when you take the diagnostic, mark the last question you've completed, and when you go over your results, just take the time, in your own time, all at once, to complete the test, and then note how long it takes for you to complete the test.

2) For your first diagnostic test, I don't recommend that you read directions or brush up on skills. Think of it like starting a diet, exercise or weight program tht you're tracking. You don't 'start' by preparing first. You weigh yourself. You check your heart rate. You note what your performance is at the beginning. This is the raw and the real. You'll only, ideally, go up from here. Preparing prior will skew your baseline score.

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